A retired Warsaw K9 that excelled in fire investigations in Warsaw and beyond has died.
Bailey had worked out of the Warsaw-Wayne Fire Territory and had worked with Fire Chief Michael Wilson since 2003, according to a news release issued by Wilson.
Bailey was 15-years-old when he died on New Year’s Eve.
Bailey began work as a “guiding eyes K9” but was soon acquired by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives to work in identifying accelerants.
Bailey was a part of four major fire investigations with the ATF. He also assisted with investigations with the FBI, the State Fire Marshal, and numerous cases in Kosciusko County and northern Indiana.
Bailey retired in 2012 and began a new role to comfort families at the Mchatton–Sadler Funeral Chapel.
He was popular in the schools in the Warsaw community, and was always a hit with the students, according to Wilson.
Bailey and Wilson attended occasional K9 demonstrations of his career and the importance of food reward with accelerant detection dogs. Until this past fall, Bailey could still “hit the spots and the cans” to identify where the flammable liquids were located.
“This adventure has been a great part of my career,” Wilson said. “I appreciated the opportunity and the life Bailey gave to our department, our community and our family.”
